Former chief justice of India B R Gavai was criticised for bowing before and seeking blessings from Dhirendra Shastri. (File Photo)Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis defended former chief justice of India B R Gavai on Sunday after he was criticised for bowing before and seeking blessings from Dhirendra Shastri, the chief priest of Bageshwar Dham in Madhya Pradesh.Activist Shyam Manav, founder-president of the Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti, criticised Justice Gavai on April 25, stating that the former CJI had now lost the right to invoke the name of Dr B R Ambedkar.“Who is Shyam Manav to say this? Who gave him this right? Is he the one distributing certificates? Lately, Shyam Manav speaks only for publicity. Since no one pays attention to him, he makes such statements daily to stay in the news,” Fadnavis said.Referring to the meeting between Gavan and Shastri, Manav had said, ”If Bhushan Gavai, despite holding a supreme position like that of a justice, bows before Dhirendra Shastri, then he should no longer claim the legacy of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar. I am deeply shocked by this meeting. Bhushan Gavai claims to follow Ambedkarite ideology. But if he is seeking blessings by falling at the feet of Dhirendra Shastri, he should never take Ambedkar’s name again. He has lost that right.”Challenging Dhirendra Shastri, Manav said, ”If Shastri truly possesses ‘divine vision, he should accept the Anti-Superstition Committee’s challenge and win the Rs 80 lakh prize.”The controversy comes as Dhirendra Shastri’s remarks about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj have drawn fire from the Opposition Congress and the NCP (SP).“Once, tired of war, Shivaji Maharaj went to Ramdas Swami and said he wanted to rest and asked the Swami to handle the state affairs, placing his crown at the Swami’s feet. To this, Ramdas Swami replied, ‘I am the Guru, and you are the disciple. A disciple’s duty is to follow the Guru’s orders. Therefore, I take over the administration and command you to manage it on my behalf’,” Shastri said on April 24.Story continues below this adOn April 25, the chief minister, however, rejected Shastri’s statement that Chhatrapati Shivaji was tired of fighting wars. He said there was no evidence of any such remarks made by Ramdas Swami.Shastri’s statement has sparked a wave of claims and counterclaims in political and social circles.Both the Congress and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP criticised Shastri. The Congress said the priest was following RSS ideology.